Congresswoman Ramirez Statement on Visit to Panama, the Darién, and the Humanitarian Crisis of Displacement Confronting the Western Hemisphere

Washington, DC—Today, Congresswoman Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03), Vice Ranking Member of the Homeland Security Committee, released the following statement after a fact-finding visit to Panama, including the Darién, a 60-mile stretch between Panama and Colombia that displaced families and refugees are crossing in record numbers.   

“This week, I visited Panama to understand the humanitarian crisis unfolding as record numbers of displaced peoples from across the world risk dangerous travel through the Darién. Those I saw in the Darién —who, in their desperation and hope, persist through violence, illness, trauma, and extortion and continue on to our southern border—will soon arrive in Chicago, Denver, and New York, seeking opportunity, protection, and refuge. 

We are facing a global crisis of displacement. Families shared stories of generalized violence, civil war, human rights violations, organized crime, corruption, persecution, economic exclusion, and climate instability that drove them from their homes. Many had tried to set down roots once, twice, even three times in new countries before choosing to risk the Darién. They have nothing left to lose. 

The Darién, our southern border, and the migrant shelters in Chicago are all connected. We must look beyond security and enforcement strategies at our border and embrace a coordinated regional and global approach to address alarming increases in instability and displacement. All countries that have endorsed the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection must resource and prioritize its implementation to mobilize the region around a coordinated approach in the Americas. The conditions driving unprecedented migration were created by policy choices over the years, sometimes generations. So, our response must be equally persistent: the situation requires long-term solutions that maximize families’ choices and present various opportunities to resettle safely in our region.

We all have a role to play. Addressing the root causes of displacement requires deeper partnerships and collective commitments to develop local and regional economies, build infrastructure, support host countries, and ensure communities in Latin America and the globe are able to thrive. We must do the work together to cultivate stable democracies, safer communities, and powerful civil societies. 

It is possible 800,000 people will travel through the Darién this year. Our deterrence has not deterred them. Border security will not extinguish their hope or temper their desperation. Until we provide expanded humane legal pathways and safer migration routes, Darién IS a route. We must protect and expand the specialized life-saving care being provided to survivors of the Darién, especially to women and children, while also defending and protecting the aid workers and organizations doing this essential work from extreme right-wing attacks. 

For the thousands of children who have endured hell and trauma, it is more urgent than ever that the international community, including the United States, honor the agreements we made at the Geneva Convention and extend protections. Migration is a human right. We have pledged to care for refugees and those fleeing violence and agreed to never send them back to harm ways. 

For the security, stability, and peace of our region, including IL-03, we must honor and live up to our promises.”